Opener and lap-machine.



Patented Jan. 30,1912@ Qmmmmw J. G. POTTER.

OPENER AND LAP MACHINE.

AAPPI'..I0A'JII0N FILED AUG. 2, 1909.

COLUMIJ'IA PLANOGRAPM co.. WASHINGTON. D. C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES CHARLES POTTER, OF PAWTUCKET, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR T0 POTTER & JOHNSTON MACHINE CO., OF PAWTUCKET, RHODE ISLAND.

OPENER AND LAP-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 30, 1912.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, JAMES C. POTTER, of Pawtucket, in the county of Providence, and in the State of Rhode Island, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Openers and Lap-Machines, and do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

Cotton when delivered from cotton openers or beaters, as ordinarily constructed, is in danger of splitting, that is, the lap may separate in laye-rs, and in so far as I am informed to the contrary, there has been no eilicient method or device for preventing` this splitting of the lap, although efforts have been made to do this.

The object of my invention, therefore, is to provide a thoroughly eliicient method and means for preventing or minimizing the splitting of the lap, and as well improve the condition of the lap or product delivered from the machine, and for the attainment of this object, my invention consists in the method and instrumentality having the characteristics of operation and structure substantially as hereinafter specified and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of an opener embodying my invention, in which the lap is formed into a roll after it is delivered from the cages or screens; Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a roll of cotton lap produced by my invention.

Inasmuch as my present invention has to do with the cotton only after it leaves the screens or cages, it is unnecessary to illustrate and describe those parts of the machine that operate on the cotton up to the point in question, and I therefore show only the cages or condensing rolls 10, the pair of stripping rolls 11 between which the lap first passes after leaving the rolls 10, the calendar rolls 12, and the rolls 13 beyond the latter, on which the lap winding roll rests and by which the lap is wound into a roll, all of which parts may be of usual construction and arrangement.

In the path of the cotton lap or sheet, as it proceeds from between therolls 10, and preferably between the stripping rolls and the calendar rolls, I place my device for subjecting the lap to the treatment which I have found efficiently prevents splitting, and

otherwise has a. beneficial or advantageous effect upon the cotton. Said device, in what I now regard as the best embodiment of my invention, consists of a pair of rolls 14 and 15, respectively, between which the sheet of cotton or lap passes, the peripheral or circumferential surfaces of which rolls' impinging upon the lap and -pressing against it at separated intervals, say about two inches apart, and produce creases or scores in the lap that give a set to the fibers of the cotton, and produce an appearance and effect in the lap like so many cords or strings binding it together. The eifect of these creases or scores is either to wholly prevent splitting, or should it commence, they will limit or circumscribe its area and virtually nullify it. "f

The effect or result I have described may be secured by providing the upper roll 14 with a series of circumferential grooves or channels 16, and providing the lower roll 15 wfith a corresponding series of thin ribs which may consist of disks 17, there being a rib for each groove which enters the groove and presses the cotton sheet or lap therein with the pressure required to produce the set of the fibers for forming the score or crease therein. The lower roll 15 is keyed or pinned to a shaft 18, to which power is applied to revolve the lower roll, and near each end the lower roll has a hub 19 upon which the upper roll 14, near its end, rests, and by which the upper roll is also revolved by friction.

The diameter of the ribs or disks of the lower roll is greater than the diameter of the hub for revolving the upper groove-carrying roll 14, and the diameter of the bottom of the grooves 16 is less than the diameter of the periphery of the roll 14 that rests on the hub, so that the peripheral speed of the ribs or disks will be greater than the speed at the bottom of the grooves. As a result of this difference in speed there will be a drawing or ironing action of the ribs on the cotton, which will facilitate the formation of the creases or scores, and also separate the cotton fibers and break up any layers or mats that might have formed in the lap or sheet.

What I claim is- 1. In a cotton opener or the like, the combination of lap-forming mechanism and a pair of rolls between which the cotton passes,

one of said rolls having circumferential grooves or channels, and t-he other having ribs entering said grooves or channels.

2. In a cotton opener or the like, the combination of a pair of rolls between which the cotton passes, one of said rolls having circumferential grooves or channels, the other having ribs entering said grooves or channels, and means for revolving said rolls, the peripheral speed of the ribs and bottoms of the grooves or channels being different.

3. In a cotton opener or the like, the combination of lap-forming mechanism and a pair of rolls between which the cotton passes, one of said rolls having circumferential grooves or channels, the other having ribs entering said grooves or channels, and means for transmitting motion to the groove-carrying roll from the other roll.

Il. In a cotton opener or the like, the combination of lap-forming mechanism and a pair of rolls between which the cotton passes, one of said rolls having circumferential grooves or channels, the other having ribs entering said grooves or channels, and means for transmitting motion to the groove-can rying roll from the other roll, consisting' of portions of the two rolls in peripheral contact distinct from the ribs and grooves.

5. In a cotton opener or the like, the combination of a pair of rolls between which the cotton passes, one of said rolls having circumferential grooves or channels, the other having ribs entering said grooves or chan nels, and means for transmitting motion to the groove-carrying roll from the other roll, consisting of portions of the two rolls in peripheral contact, the bottoms of the grooves being of less diameter than the portions of the groove-carrying roll in contact with the other roll.

G. In a cotton opening and lapping machine, the combination of cage-form rolls, lap-receiving rolls, and a pair of rolls situated between the cage-form rolls and the lap-receiving rolls, having, respectively, complementary grooves and ribs, each rib being opposite and entering a groove.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand.

JAMES CHARLES POTTER.

IVitnesses:

MITCHELL ADAMS, ELvnRY LINGARD.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, ID. C. 

